Modern life is tough. Not many of us can afford to organize their time in such a way as not to be overwhelmed. Doing nothing, at least for a couple of minutes, has become a privilege. We don’t know how to not be busy anymore. And this takes a toll on every aspect of our lives.
We mire in information. We process around 100,000 words every day and that’ s after we finish our job related tasks. And most of this is explained by the fact that we reach for our phones whenever we have a bit of free time. Our brain becomes addicted to the constant flow of information. And of course, it goes through withdrawal whenever it doesn’t get its fix: more information.
And our psychological wellbeing suffers. We become anxious, irritable and sometimes even depressed. And in top of everything, we become less creative. When we are extremely busy we lose the ability to switch between focus and daydreaming. Idleness fosters creative thinking and if you combine it with intense focus, the result is innovative work.
Being creative means seeing reality from another perspective, making connections that were invisible until then. But in order to do so, one has to allow himself to daydream, to hit the reset button. Doing nothing, meditating or just relaxing is when the free associations appear, when we form new connections between concepts and ideas.
Take a moment to consider when was the last time that you had a moment of total peace, when you indulged in doing nothing, when you allowed yourself to disconnect from the web. I bet it was so long ago that you don’t even remember.
In order to get out of the whirl, try to:
- Take a long walk
- Spend time playing games
- Reward yourself with relaxing activities after doing focused work
If you don’t allow yourself time for being disconnected from the frenzy, you won’t be able to perform deep work. Being open to new ideas and approaches will increase your creativity and therefore you will find faster solutions to your problems. The less you will do, the less you’ll need to do.
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